Fruit-sizing machine



A. H. IVICINTYRE.

FRUIT SIZING MACHINE.

APPucATloN msn APR.16.1919.

Patented July 3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

/N VEN TR A TTORNEYS A. H. McINT-YRE.

FRUIT SIZING MACHINE.

APPLICATION man APR. 1s. 1919.

Patented July 19.1921.

3 SHEETSS-HEET 2.

Amm/Veys A. H. MCINTYRE.

FRUIT SIZING MACHINE. APPLICATION- man APR. 16, 1919.

1,385,218. Patented July 19, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WTNESSES l /NVENOH 17j W TTOHNEYS UNITED STATESy PATENT OFFICE.

ALLEN H. MCINTYRE, 0F DUNEDIN, FLORIDA, ASSIGNOB TO SKINNER MACHINERY COMPANY, OF DUNEDIN, FLORIDA, A CORPORATION OF FLORIDA.

FRUIT-SIZING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 19, 1921.

Application led April 16, 1919. Serial No. 290,440.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatl, ALLEN H. MCINTYRE, a citizen of the Dommlon of Canada, and a resident of Dunedin, in the county of Pinellas and State of Florida, have invented a new and Improved Fruit-Sizing Machine, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of the present invention is to provide a machine particularly adapted for sizing peaches and similar fragile fruits, in which a relatively slow operating machine shall have a relatively large capacity and in which the fruit shall be gently supported, transported 'and separated into lots of substantially uniform size, without the liability of bruising and injuring the fruit.

To the above ends the invention consists of the fruit sizing machine and the devices and combinations of devices as shown in the accompanying drawings and as hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings I have shown a fruit sizing machine embodying the invention, in which similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts.

Figure 1 shows a longitudinal sectional view through the machine, parts being shown in elevation and the section being taken on the line 1-1 in Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a broken top plan view.

Fig. 3 shows in partial top plan and sectional view portions of the sizer or conveyer.

Fig. 4 shows in partial sectional view and partial side elevation portions of the sizer or conveyer.

Fig. 5 shows a broken view of ortions of the sizer or conveyer and the trac s for supporting and controlling the operation thereof, parts being shown in transverse section. The machine comprises a suitable support ing frame 10 which may be of any suitable construction, of suflicient strength and rigidityto support the operative parts, but which need not be particularly described, and obviously it can be made of any desirable material such as wood or iron.

In the machine as illustrated the sizer consists of a sizingconveyer, two parallel end- ]ess sprocket chains 16, which are supported and driven by the sprocket wheels 15, mounted upon shafts 11, 12, 13 and 14, suitably supported in journals in the frame 10.

The chains 16 travel in a fixed path about the sprocket wheels, and in order to insure the proper support and guidance of the upper run of the chains 16 and the sizing conveyer, suitable tracks 17 are provided extending between the sprocket wheels 15 carried bv the shafts 11 and 12, which tracks (see Fig. 5) may be trough-like structures fixed to the inner faces of the vertical uprights of the frame 10 in any suitable manner, with the openings facing inward toward each other, the lower sides of the trough supporting the chain 16, and the upper sides slightly over-lapping the sizer as clearly shown in Fig. 5. This construction will permit parts of the sizer to drop below the guides 17, while preventing any upward movement above the path of travel, and as shown the ath of travel from left to right will be slig tly upward.

The inner opposing links of the chains 16 at suitable intervals and the required distance apart, are provided with inwardly projecting trunnions 18, upon which are supported, so as to be freely revolved, the rollers 19 (see Figs. 3, 4 and 5). As the trunnions 18 are carried by the chains 16, the rollers 19 are caused to work in the fixed path of movement of the chains 16.

The trunnions 18 also support, so as to freely swing thereon, the links 22 which at their free ends are provided with inwardly projecting trunnions 21, upon which are mounted to freely revolve rollers 20, the rollers 19 and 2O extending across the machine from side to side between the chains 16 and are arranged in pairs spaced apart and parallel to each other.

The foregoing construction is such that the rollers 19 and 20 of each unit may freely revolve, and while at all times retaining a xed distance with relation to each other, yet the roller 20 of each pair of rollers 19 and 20 has an up and down swinging movement with the pivoted links 22 about the trunnions 18 as ya center, and into and out of the path of movement of the chains 16 and the rollers 19 carried thereby, thus the roller 2() of one unit has an up and down movement with relation to the roller 19 of an adjacent unit.

tti

r1`his up and down movement of the rollers 20 varies the width of the opening between theJ rollers 20 of one pair of rollers 19 and 20, of one unit and the rollers 19 of an adjacent unit for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

The pivoted links 22 and the rollers 2() carried thereby fall by gravity, as they pass from the left-hand or entering end of the machine, as the machine is shown in Fig. 1, toward the right-hand end; the direction of movement belng indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1, and the rollers 20 rest upon and pass over suitable tracks 25 and 26 as indicatedin Fig. 1, the tracks 25 being fixed to the vertical supports of the frame in any suitable manner and at a slightly varying distance from the plane of movement of the chains 16, from the left-hand toward the right-hand end; in other words, the tracks 17 and 25 and 26 diverge slightly, so as to widen the space between them from the left-hand toward the right-hand end.

From the tracks 25, as the sizing conveyer passes toward the right, as shown in Fig. 1, the rollers 20 will pass to and are supported by adjustable tracks 26, forming a continuation of tracks 25.

These adjustable tracks 26 are supported by threaded bolts 27 (see Fig. 4t) by means of which they may be adjusted upl and down with relation to the guides 17 and the path of travel of the chains 16 and rollers 19, so as to regulate the distance to which the rollers 20 may drop, with relation to the path of movement of the rollers 19, and thus regulate the movement of the rollers 20 of one unit, with relation to the rollers 19 of the next adjacent unit. Preferably the tracks 26 at the extreme right-hand end will be sharply deflected downward as shown in From the foregoing description it will be observed that as the sizing units pass from the sprocket wheels 15 mounted on the shaft 11, toward the right, the rollers 20 ofeach unit will drop by gravity below the path of travel of the chains 16 and the rollers 19, and that the distance between the roller 2O of one unit and the roller 19 of the next adjacent unit will be gradually increased and the space widened, as the conveyer moves toward the right, until the roller 20 passes off of the right-hand ends of the tracks 26, at which time they will drop so that the roller 20 will be directly beneath the roller 19 of its unit.

Further travel toward the right brings the rollers 2() inte engagement with tracks a by means of which the rollers 20 of each unit are raised, so that when they pass about the sprocket wheels 15 on the shaft 12, they be restored to the plane of movement of and will follow directly behind the rollers 19, in the same line of movement.

From the sprocket wheels 15 on the shaft 12 the sizing conveyer passes to the inclined support 71, and about the sprocket wheels 15 on the shaft 13, to the inclined support 72, and thence about the sprocket wheels 15 on the shaft 14 and thence over the inclined support 60; the rollers of each unit as the sizing conveyer passes downward in contact with the support 71 and upward in contact with the support 72, and thence over the support 60, being positioned directly in line with each other and traveling in the same path of movement.

The fruit te be sized is delivered to the upper surface of the sizing conveyer and. comes to rest in the space between the rollers 19 of one unit and the rollers 2O of the next adjacent unit, and in order to prevent the vfruit from coming to rest between the rollers 19 and. 2() of a single unit, the space between these rollers will be closed by a guard 23, extending transversely across and substantially closing the space between the rollers 19 and 20 of a given unit, between the links 22.

Preferably these guards 23 will be supported by pins 211, carried by the links 22, and their opposite edges will be curved to conform to the curvature of the rollers 19 and 20, but will be out of contact therewith,

so as not to interfere with the free rolling action of the said rollers, and the upper surfaces of the guards 23 will be disposed in a plane parallel to a line drawn to touch the peripheries of the rollers, as clearly shown in Figs. 8 and 4i.

These guards are not shown in Figs. l and 2, and in Fig. 2 other parts of the ma chine below the sizing conveyer, have been omitted for the sake of clearness of illus* tration.

'1`he guards 23 constitute an ell'ectnal means for preventing the fruit from resting in the space between the rollers 19 and 20 of a unit, and .insure that any fruit which may drop thereon when delivered to the sizing conveyer, or which may have come to rest thereon at the initial point of introduction of the fruit thereto, will, as the sizing conveyer moves from the lef t toward the right, as the machine is shown in Fi l, fall by gravity until it comes to rest in the Space between the roller 19 of one unit and the roller 20 of the next adjacent unit, ready to be released and discharged as the space between such rollers is widened, by the dropping of the rollers below the path of travel of the rollers 19.

- From the foregoing description .it will be understood that the fruit delivered to the upper surface of the sizing conveyer will, regardless of its size, come to rest upon the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units, and will be carried along and slowly revolved as the rollers 2O are revolved by contact with their supporting tracks 26, until the dropping of the rollers 20 shall have widened t e space between the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units, suificientl to permit a given size fruit to pass throufr the opening, and as the rollers 20 gradually drop lower and lower, as the sizing conveyer is moved, from the left-hand to the right-hand end of the machine, the space between the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units gradually becomes wider, and permits the passage through the openings, of fruit of gradually larger diameter.

It is of course essential that the fruit as it is released by the size r shall not be permitted to drop any great distance, and 1t is further essential that it be divided up into lots, the fruit in any one lot approximating a given size within particular limits of variation, which of course is determined to a great extent by the number of lots into which the fruit will be separated and divided. If divided into two lots as it falls from the sizer, the variation in size in such lots will be considerably greater than if divided into four lots or a larger number of lots.

In the machine of the drawing, I have shown means whereby the fruit as it is released and falls from the sizing conveyer will be divided into four lots; thus the fruit which is released as the sizing conveyer passes over the tracks 25, will be received upon deiiectors 30 and 31 located closely adjacent to the under surface of the tracks 25, and finally rolls upon a transversely running endless belt 32, which carries the fruit and delivers it to a trou h 33.

Obviously ythe fruit elivered by the sizing conveyer to the belt 32, will be of the smallest range of sizes as the distance between the tracks 25 and the path of movement of the chains 16 and the rollers 19 while varying somewhat from the left-hand to the ri ht-hand end of the tracks 25, is considera ly less in this section of movement of the sizing conveyer than at any other point, in the upper run of the sizing conveyer, so that the spaces between the rollers 20 of one unit and rollers 19 of adjacent units, will be relatively narrower, permitting the release of the fruit of the smaller diameters. 4

As the sizing conveyer passes on to the tracks 26, the space between the rollers 20 of one unit and the rollers 19 of an adjacent unit gradually gets larger and larger from the left-hand to the right-hand end of such tracks, permitting gra ually larger diameters of fruit to be released, and by adjusting the tracks 26, with relation to the line of movement of the chains 16 and the rollers 19, the width of the openings between the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units may be regulated, as required by the range of sizes of any particular lot of fruit being run through the machine.

Beneath the tracks 26, there is located a transversely running belt 42, upon which the fruit is deposited as it is released by the Sizing conveyer; the belt 42 being mounted upon and driven by suitable pulleys and supporting and carrying the fruit laterally from under the sizin conveyer, and delivering it between gui ing partitions 40,and 41, and deflecting partitions 52, and 53, leading to the troughs 45, 46 and 47, and as there are two partitions dividing the surface of the belt into three sections, obviously the fruit delivered to the belt 42 beneath the tracks 26, will be divided into three lots, the fruit in each lot being substantially uniform, but of slightly varying diameters within a given range.

Obviously the numberof partitions may be varied to reduce or increase the number of lots into which the fruit delivered by the sizing conveyer may be divided, and in order to control the range of size of any given lot or lots, the partitions 40 and 41 are adjustable, so they may be positioned at different points transversely to the width of the belt 42, and beneath, and with relation to the tracks 26.

For this purpose the partitions 40, and 41, are provided with slots 48, engaged by bolts 49, fitted and adjustable in slots 50, of the slotted supports 51, attached to the frame.

Any suitable means may be provided, as for instance the bolts 49, for effecting this adjustment of the partitions 4() and 41.

lt will of course be understood that while it is preferable to provide for an adjustment of the tracks 26, an efficient machine may be produced, by simply providing diverging tracks for the chains 16 and rollers 19, and the rollers 20 respectively, vpermitting the gradual widening of the space between the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units, without such adjustment of the tracks 26, by simply adjusting the position of the partitions 40 and 41 across the width of the belt 42, or by using a greater or lesser number of such partitions, to separate the fruit into given lots, as it is released by the sizing conveyer.

The fruit to be separated and sized will be delivered to the upper surface of the siz ing conveyer, as it passes over the support 60, and just about as it is to pass on the tracks 25, and preferably the fruit will be delivered in rows, extending transversely across the sizing conveyer.

For this purpose a delivering conveyer 55 is employed, (see Fig. 1), which may and preferably will consist of a pair of sprocket chains passing about suitable sprocket wheels, and driven by any suitable mecha nism, and preferably at a speed one-half of that of the sizing conveyer, and such delivering conveyer 55 comprises rollers car- Iied by sprocket chains as indicated in s this delivering conveyer moves at a speed one-half that of the sizing conveyer, a row of fruit will be delivered approximately between the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units.

It'will pf course be understood that the relative position of the parts will be such that the fruit will be delivered from the delivering conveyer 55, to the Sizing conveyer, Without the necessity of dropping it any great distance, so as to be deposited gently upon the rollers 19 and 20, and that such Jruit as may fall upon the guards 23, will drop in line with the fruit in the space be-` tween the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units, and that this lining up of the fruit will be greatly facilitated by the rolling action of the rollers 19 and 20, with the fruit resting thereagainst and thereon, as the sizing convever travels from left to right.

'By vsharply depressing the discharging ends of the tracks or supports 26 the space b etween the rollers 19 and 20 of adjacent units, will be enlarged to the maximum extent, to insure the discharge from the sizing conveyer of all the fruit upon the surface of the belt 42, before any given unit passes from the track 26.

It will'of course be understood that suitable guards and guides will be provided where necessary, to insure that the Jfruit shall not roll laterally from the sizing conveyer, or from the belts 32 and 42, or in its passage to the troughs 33, 34, 45, 46 and 47.

As shown in Fig. 1 the bottoms ot the troughs 45, 46 and 47 will be slightly inclined so that the fruit will roll by gravity to the outer ends thereofin convenient position for the packers.

lt will et course be understood that the delivering conveyer 55, and the sizing conveyer will be driven by power from any suitable source. lt' desired, however, the sizing conveyer may be provided with a crank 82, on the shaft 12 by means of which it may be operated by hand.

1t is to be observed that the separation ot the fruit in my machine is accomplished by the gradual gravitational movement ot one of a pair of supports with relation to the adjacentsupport and according as the space between the supports increases in width, and that such increase in width and the move ment of the movable support with relation to the xed support is controlled by diverging tracks or guides which gradually permit the movable support to tall below the Vfixed support, and that such relative movement of the supports is not dependent upon any positively operating instrumentalities, whereby to move them.

lt will be further noted that where pivotal swinging units are used, by providing for a gradual falling of the free end of one unit, with relation to thelpivotal peint of the next adjacent unit, provide 'l or a gradual widening of the space, without a sudden movement ot parts dependent upon tripping levers and other instrumentalities, thus insuring that the fruit supported by the rollers of adjacent units, will be released and discharged as soon as the opening therebetween becomes wide enough to permit the release and discharge oi? fruit of a diameter corresponding to the width of the space between adjacent units.

The operation of my machine has been sufiiciently set forth in connection with the foregoing description of its construction and organization, and I deem a further description of its operation to be unnecessry to those skilled in this art.

It is to be particularly noted that the sizing, separation and the delivery et the fruit to the various troughs in the present ma chine is accomplished by providing two parallel transversely extending supports spaced apart normally a distancel less than the di ameter of the smallest fruits to be sized and separated, and that the fruit rests upon the supports over the space between them and that one of the supports moves in a fixed path while the other, while moving in the same general direction, also has a movement below the path of movement of' the adjacent supports and that this downward movement ot' the movable support takes place under the torce et gravity and the limit of movement is controlled by a track or guide diverging in the direction of longitudinal movement from the track or path ot travel oi the fixed support or the vertical movable support, the result being that the space between the two supports is progres* sively widened during the lateral movement l so as to release the fruit ot varying dimm eters at dii'lierent points along the line ot travel, and so far as ll am aware ot the prior state ot the art, such sizing and separating instrumentalities embodying a gravitationally movable support toi" operating with a relatively fixed support has not hcreto'ibre been employed in machines ot this character.

l prefer to employ freely rotating rollers tor the supports, but obviously my invention is not limited thereto nor is it limited to the exact details of construction which have been illustrated in the drawings and. described in the foregoing specification.

Having described my invention, l claim:

1. ln a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveycr, means to move the sizing conveyor in a substantially horizontal plane, said sizing conveyor comprising two laterally extending parallel spaced fruit su iports, one of said supports being movable below, and out of and into the path et travel of the sizing conveyer and with relation to the other support.

2. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizingconveyer in a substantially horizontal plane, said sizing conveyer comprising two ilaterally extending parallel spaced fruit supports, one of said supports being movable below, and out of and into the path of travel of the sizing conveyer and relatively to the other support, an-d independent tracks for supporting and controlling said supports.

3. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizing conveyer in a substantially horizontal plane, said sizing conveyer comprising two laterally extending parallel spaced fruit supporting rollers, one of the said rollers being movable below, and out of and into the path of travel of the sizing conveyer, and relatively to the other roller.

4. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizing conveyer in a substantially horizontal plane, said sizing conveyer comprising two laterally extending parallel spaced fruit supporting rollers, one of the'said rollers beingy movable below, and out of and into the path of travel of the sizing conveyer, and relatively to the other roller, an-d independent tracks for supporting and controlling the said rollers.

5. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, an endless sizing conveyer, comprising parallel endless chains, a fruit support extending laterally and connected to said chains, a fruit support pivotally connected to said chains, and arranged parallel to the first support and spaced apart therefrom, and an inclined track su porting and controlling the movement of) the pivoted support with relation to the fixed support.

6. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, comprising endless chains, parallel transversely extending fruit sizing rollers supported by said chains, one of said rollers belng pivotally connected to said chains and having a movement into and out of the path of travel of said chains and with relation to the other roller, and a track or support controlling the movement of said pivoted roller.

7. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, comprising a plurality of transversely extending fixed fruit sizing rollers, and a plurality of pivotally connected fruit sizin rollers, horizontally arranged and exten ing parallel to and spaced apart from the fixed rollers, and independent tracks for supporting and controlling the path of movement of the fixed rollers and the pivotally connected rollers, said pivotally connected rollers being movable into and out of the path of travel of the fixed rollers.

8. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, comprising a pair of endless chains, a plurality of ixed parallel fruit sizing rollers supported by said chains and extending transversely across the machine, swinging links connected to said chains and interposed between and alternating with said xed rollers, fruit sizing rollers supported by the free ends of the said swinging links in position to extend parallel to the fixed rollers, guards carried by said,

links, and an adjustable track or support to control the extent of the swinging movement of said links and the roller carried thereby, with relation to the fixed rollers.

9. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizing conveyer in a substantially horizontal plane, said conveyer comprising two laterally extending parallel spaced fruit sizing supports, one of the said supports being movable below, and out of and into the path of travel of the sizing conveyer and relatively to the other support, and an adjustable track or support for controlling the relative movement of the movable fruit sizing support.

10. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizing conveyer in a substantially horizontal plane, said conveyer comprising` two fruit sizing supports, one of the said supports being movable below, and out of and into the path of travel of the sizing conveyer and relativel to the other support, means to control the relative movement of the movable support, and adjustable guiding and separating partitions located beneath the sizlng conveyer and adjustable along the path of travel thereof.

11. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer comprising endless chains, transversely extending fixed fruit sizing supports carried by the said chains, movable fruit sizing supports pivotally connected to and swinging below, and into and out of the plane of travel of said chains and fixed supports, and movable guides and tracks `controlling the swinging movement of the swinging supports, to cause said swinging supports to travel in the path of the fixed supports at substantially all points excepting along that portion of travel where said sizing conveyer receives, supports and sizes the fruit, with means to permit the swinging supports to gradually move below the path of travel at this portion of the machine.

12. A fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer comprising endless chains, fixed fruit sizing rollers extending transversely across and supported by the said chains, swinging links ivotally connected at one end to the saidj chains, fruit sizing rollers carried by the said links at their opposite ends, said rollers being arranged parallel to the xed rollers and alternating therewith, means to support and drive the said chains and rollers in a substantially horizontal plane, iixed diverging independent tracks for controlling the relative movement of said rollers along a portion of their travel, and an adjustable track located below the iixed track for controlling the relative movement of said rollers during a portion of their travel, and forming a continuation of the diver-ging tracks.

13. In a Jfruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer comprising a substantially horizontally movable carrier, a plurality of parallel fruit sizing supports extending transversely across said carrier, pivotally connected swinging fruit sizing supports interposed between and relatively movable below, and into and out of the plane of movement "of the carrier and the fixed supports, means to control said swinging supports and to limit the extent of their movement, and a delivering conveyer for delivering the fruit in transversely extending rows to the sizing conveyer.

14. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer comprising a substantially horizontally movable carrier, a plurality of parallel fruit sizing supports extending transversely across said carrier, pivotally connected swinging fruit sizing supports interposed between and relatively movable below, and into and out of the plane of movement of the carrier and the fixed supports, means to control said swinging supports and to limit the extent of their movement, a delivering conveyer for delivering the fruit in transversely extending rows to the sizing conveyer, and means to move' the delivering conveyer at a relatively slower speed than that at which the sizing conveyer is moved.

15. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer comprising endless chains supported and driven so that the upper reach shall be in a substantially horizontal plane, and comprising a plurality of transversely extending fruit sizing supports secured to said chains and movable with and in the plane thereof, a plurality ofalternating movable fruit sizing supports extending transversely and parallel to the fixed supports, and a track or guide therefor extending along a portion of the horizontal reach, permittingand controlling the movement of the movable 'supports below, and out of and into the plane of travel of the fixed supports.

16. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer, means to move the sizing conveyer in a substantially horizontal line in one direction, means for receiving the fruit discharged from the conveyer located beneath the conveyer and relatively close thereto, fruit supportin and dischar ing instrumentalities carried by the conrasante veyer, and means to operate the saine to lower the fruit toward the receiving means and to discharge the fruit in a direction opposite to that in which the conveyer is moving.

17. In a fruit sizing machine, in combination, a sizing conveyer' comprising a pair of fruit sizing rollers extending transversely across the machine and arranged parallel to each other and spaced apart normally a distance less than the diameter of the average fruit being operated upon, one of the rollers being movable downwardly and away from the other roller so as to gradually widen the space between the rollers, and means to move the conveyer to eiiect the movement of the movable roller.

18. In a device of the class described, a conveyer embodying spaced grading elements and movable grading elements mounted to swing in arcs and cooperating with the spaced grading elements to define grading openings; and means for progressively lowering the movable grading elements to vary the size of the said grading openings.

19. In a device of the class described. a conveyer embodying spaced grading elements and movable grading elements coperating with the spaced grading elements, the movable grading elements being mounted to swing in arcs and to rotate on their axes; and means for progressively lowering the movable grading elements to vary the distance between the spaced and movable grading elements, the movable grading elements coperating with said means thereby to impart rotation t0 the movable grading elements.

20. In a device of the class described, a conveyer comprising main grading elements having straight line advancing movement with the conveyer and auxiliary grading elcments having advancing movement with the conveyer and radial swinging movement on the conveyer toward and away from the main grading elements to define grading openings; and means coperating with the auxiliary grading elements to vary the size ofthe said grading openings.

21. In a device of the class described, a conveyer comprising main and auxiliary grading elements disposed in pairs, the auxiliary grading element of each pair being suspended on the conveyer for radial swinging movement toward and away from the main grading element of an adjoining pair, and means for adjusting the auxiliary grading elements with respects to the main grading elements.

22. In a sizer and grader, a conveyer coinprising main rollers, and auxiliary rollers movable toward and away from the main rollers to define grading openings of different sizes; and tracks whereon the lower portion of the main and auxiliary rollers rest to immrt rotation to the main and auxiliary tions of the main and auxiliary rollers rest rol ers in the same direction when the conto impart rotation to the main and auxiliary 10 veyer is advanced. vrollers in the same direction when the con- 23. In a sizer and grader, a conveyer comveyer is advanced; and means for raising prising main rollers, and auxiliary rollers and lowering the track of the auxiliary movable toward and away from the main rollers.

rollers to define grading openings ofdifferent sizes; tracks whereon the lower por- 4 ALLEN H. MOINTYRE. 

